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  Cricket in Antigua

  If you're in Antigua for any length of time, you'll find it almost impossible to avoid the subject of cricket – the true national passion. If you're lucky, there'll be a game at the Rec during your stay; if so, don't miss the chance to get along and check out the calypso atmosphere. Failing that, expect at least to get roped into a game of beach cricket, where you'll find fielders standing under the palm trees and in the sea waiting for a miscued shot.

  Cricket arrived in Antigua via the British military in the mid-nineteenth century. The 59th Foot Regiment formed the island's first club on New Year's Day 1842, and the Antigua Times recorded an Antigua XI beaten by the crew of the HMS Phaeton at Shirley Heights on September 26, 1863. For decades, cricket clubs remained the preserve of the ruling class: strictly whites-only and often little more than extended social clubs for the planters and merchants. But, despite the early snobbery that was attached to the game, it soon began to catch on in the sugar estates, where the workers drew up their own pitches and organized matches.

  In 1895 Antigua received its first overseas touring team, who reported playing against a home team composed entirely of "coloured" players. (On the same tour, by comparison, the authorities in Barbados excluded black players from their team, irrespective of merit.) In 1920 the Rising Sun Cricket Club was founded for poor men in St John's, and by the 1930s – half a century before independence – Antigua had its first black sporting hero in the batsman Pat Nanton.

  Nonetheless, Antigua remained a cricketing minnow well into the twentieth century, with the regional game dominated by the "Big Four" cricket nations: Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad and Guyana. In 1966 the Caribbean Shell Shield competition was established for those four and a fifth team – the Combined Islands – made up of players from Antigua and the other small islands. Rarely taken seriously during the 1970s, this Combined Islands team swept to victory in the Shield in 1981, the year of Antigua's independence, led by the brilliant Antiguan Viv Richards. From that time, the Combined Islands team was allowed to become two – the Leeward Islands of the northeastern Caribbean (dominated by Antigua) and the Windward Islands of the southeast (including Grenada, St Vincent and St Lucia) – with the Leewards team consistently performing well in both the Shield and the one-day Red Stripe Cup, inaugurated in 1982.

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  The National Museum

  Corner of Long and Market streets. Mon–Fri 8.30am–4pm, Sat 10am–2pm. Free.

  Housed in a 1747 Neoclassical courthouse, the National Museum of Antigua and Barbuda occupies just one large room, but it's indisputably worth thirty minutes of your time while you're exploring the capital – you can almost feel the enthusiasm with which the collection has been assembled and displayed. The exhibits start by showing off the islands' early geological history, backed up by fossils and coral skeletons, and move on to more extensive coverage of their first, Amerindian inhabitants. Jewellery, primitive tools, pottery shards and religious figures used by these early settlers have been found at sites across Antigua and Barbuda and are well laid out here, with brief descriptions of their significance.

  The museum has small displays on Columbus, the European invasion and sugar production. An interesting 1750 map of Antigua shows the plantations, as well as all the reefs that threatened shipping around the island. There is also an unusual exhibit on the emancipation of the slaves and the resulting patterns of settlement. Upon emancipation in 1834 there were only four towns on Antigua, with almost all the ex-slaves living on the sugar estates; the planters usually refused to sell them land, since they wanted to keep them tied to the plantations. The exhibit shows how – either with the assistance of missionaries or by sheer determination – the former slaves were able to set themselves up in "free villages" across the island.

  Elsewhere, there are displays on the island of Barbuda, which might whet your appetite for a visit, and the tiny uninhabited rock of Redonda. There's also an example of the ancient game of warri or mancala, brought by slaves from Africa's Gold Coast, and, rather bizarrely, a rhinoceros skull from Rwanda. Last but certainly not least, one of the museum's most prized exhibits is the cricket bat with which, in 1986, Antiguan Vivian Richards (now Sir Vivian) scored the fastest-ever test-match century, taking just 56 balls to score 100 runs against England on his home turf.

  Once you've finished your tour, take a peek in the small gift shop, where you can pick up pottery, reproduction maps of the islands, postcards and books.

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  Vivi and other Antiguan cricketing heroes

  The first Antiguan to play for the West Indies team was fast bowler Andy Roberts, who made his debut against England in 1974; he was shortly followed by Vivian Richards, who first played against India in the same year. Within a couple of years both players had made a dramatic impact on the side – heavily involved in the slaughter of English cricket in 1976 – and in 1981 the island was awarded the right to stage its first test match, where Richards made the superb century discussed in the National Museum account.

  It's hard to overestimate the importance of Vivi (as he's known locally) to the development of the country's self-confidence in the years immediately before and after independence in 1981. For this tiny island to have produced a man rated by many as the finest batsman of his generation was an enormous boost to its self-esteem. Throughout his career, Richards's spectacular hitting and imperious manner endeared him to a generation of cricket-watchers worldwide. Now retired, Richards has eschewed the political career many expected, but the street where he was born in St John's now bears his name (it runs east–west just south of the public market) and – as a "goodwill ambassador" – he remains one of Antigua's most precious living assets.

  Though unthinkable just two decades ago, today tiny Antigua is one of the leading cricketing venues in the Caribbean, with test matches, Busta Cup and Red Stripe Cup games played there annually. Between 1985 and 1995 the West Indies team was captained by Antiguans – Richards and, later, his protégé Richie Richardson – and Antiguan players like fast bowler Curtly Ambrose and wicketkeeper Ridley Jacobs have continued to feature prominently in the side. Small wonder, perhaps, that at times people appear to talk of little else.

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  St John's Cathedral

  Newgate Street, west of Church Lane. Daily 9am–5pm. Free.

  The imposing twin towers of the Cathedral Church of St John the Divine are the capital's dominant landmark. A simple wooden church was first built on this hilltop site in 1681 and, after heavy destruction was wrought by a number of earthquakes and hurricanes, the present cathedral was put up in 1847.

  From the outside, the grey-stone Baroque building is not particularly prepossessing – it's squat and bulky, and the two towers are capped by slightly awkward cupolas. More attractively, the airy interior of the cathedral is almost entirely encased in dark pine, designed to hold the building together in the event of earthquake or hurricane. The walls are dotted with marble tablets commemorating distinguished figures from the island's history, some of them rescued from the wreck of earlier churches on this site and incorporated into the new cathedral. In the grounds of the cathedral, the whitewashed and equally Baroque lead figures on the south gate – taken from a French ship near Martinique in the 1750s during the Seven Years' War between France and Britain – represent St John the Baptist and St John the Divine, draped in flowing robes.

  Independence Avenue

  Independence Avenue commemorates, at least in name, the long struggle for Antiguan nationhood. There are not necessarily any reminders of this past – just a collection of drab office buildings and residences and a constant flow of traffic – but you'll almost certainly find yourself on this road at some point, en route to somewhere more interesting. Still, the story itself is compelling.

  By the time of World War II, life for the vast majority of Antiguans was very tough. There was widespread poverty and unemployment across the island, while for
those who did have work on the plantations, hours were long and conditions onerous. In 1938, the Moyne Commission was sent from London to report on social conditions in the West Indies, and recorded that Antigua was among the most impoverished and neglected islands in the region. The commission recommended reform to the island's stringent laws banning trade unions, and in the following year the Antigua Trades and Labour Union (ATLU) was formed.

  Within a few years the union had helped to improve conditions for plantation workers. Its major success came in 1951 when, under the leadership of former Salvation Army officer Vere (V.C.) Bird, workers refused to handle the sugar crop until their rates of pay were improved. For a year, the employers tried to starve the workers into submission, but they were eventually forced to concede a substantial pay rise. Subsequently, national confidence began to improve.

  After the war, Antigua continued to be administered from afar by Britain's colonial office, but gradually the island's fledgling politicians were given authority for the day-to-day running of their country. The Antigua Labour Party, an offshoot of the ATLU, won the first local elections in 1946, and a decade later the island was given responsible ministerial government (meaning that the local people formed the government, though ultimate authority still lay with Britain). Ideological differences between the political parties – there were a variety of small parties, in addition to the larger ALP – were minimal, and all parties quickly came to support some form of independence from Britain. A constitutional conference was held in 1966, leading the following year to autonomy for the country in its internal and foreign affairs, although defence remained a matter for Britain.

  Slowly, the national economy began to take strides forward, assisted (despite the closure of the last sugar plantations in 1971) by the development of tourism. By the elections of 1980 all parties considered that, politically and economically, the country was sufficiently mature for full independence and, following a further conference in Britain, the flag of an independent Antigua and Barbuda was finally raised on November 1, 1981. Since then, each year on this day an Independence Day Parade takes place at the Rec.

  The public market

  At the south end of Market Street. Mon–Sat from around 6am until sunset.

  Home to the colourful public market, Market Street was once known as Scotch Row, in honour of the traders – many of them early Scottish immigrants who fled to the West Indies to escape the tyranny of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century English landowners – who once lined it with shops selling sugar, indigo, coffee, tobacco and rum.

  Today it remains an important shopping thoroughfare, the best place to head to for exotic fruit, vegetables and fish. As you'd expect, it's a lively, bustling place, particularly on Friday and Saturday, with a fine variety of food – for great snacking, head down and pick up some fresh, delicious sapodillas, papayas and mangoes.

  The V.C. Bird statue

  Right outside the public market is a large statue of V.C. Bird, who dominated Antiguan politics for half a century after taking over the leadership of the ATLU in 1943. Known as Papa Bird, he became the colony's first chief minister in 1956, its first premier in 1967 when internal self-government was granted by Britain, and the first prime minister of an independent Antigua and Barbuda in 1981.

  Though Bird has long been hugely popular with Antiguans, he and his entourage have also been consistently controversial. During his time in power, his government developed a reputation for doing business with all kinds of dodgy characters. There were allegations that ministers had brokered arms deals between Israel and the apartheid regime in South Africa, and even with the Medellin drugs cartel in Colombia. A British commission accused the government of "unbridled corruption", and the US – who kept a military base on the island and poured in over US$200 million in aid – of turning a blind eye, in an era when fear of radical governments (such as those of Cuba and Grenada) was the United States' leading concern.

  Whatever the truth of the allegations, Vere Bird retained power until 1994 when, at the age of 84, he handed leadership of his party and the country to his giant son Lester, once Antigua's leading fast bowler and now probably its wealthiest man.

  Accommodation

  City View Hotel

  Newgate Street; tel 562 0256, fax 562 0242, www.carib-hotels.com/antigua/cityviewhotel.

  City centre hotel aimed at the business traveller, with 39 comfortable air-conditioned rooms, with cable TV, for US$94 single and US$118 double year-round. A good bet for cricket fans in town for a big game.

  Heritage Hotel

  Heritage Quay; tel 462 2262, fax 462 1179, [email protected].

  Right by the cruise-ship pier, this hotel is a decent option if you're in town on business; otherwise, it's completely missable. Spacious if rather drab rooms, all with their own well-equipped kitchens and priced from $100 year-round.

  Joe Mike's Hotel

  Corner of Nevis Street and Corn Alley; tel 462 1142, fax 462 6056, [email protected].

  Just a dozen rooms in this friendly place, right in the centre of town. Nothing special, but handy if you want to spend a night in the city. Rooms cost US$65 single or double.

  Silver Dollar Guest House

  Corner of All Saints and Sheppard streets; tel 464 3699.

  A short walk from the downtown market and bus station, this small, easy-going (though uninspiring) guesthouse has clean rooms with private baths and fans. One of the cheapest options on the island, charging US$40 for a double, or US$30 for a single.

  Restaurants and bars

  Big Banana – Pizzas in Paradise

  Redcliffe Quay; tel 480 6985 or 480 6986, fax 480 6989, www.bigbanana-antigua.com/pizzas.html. Mon–Sat 8.30am–midnight.

  Popular with tourists for lunch and dinner, Big Banana – Pizzas in Paradise has a pub-like atmosphere and serves food of reasonable quality – pizzas, salads and baked potatoes, as well as more traditional Antiguan fish and chicken meals. Prices are decent, from EC$15 to EC$35, and you can eat either inside or outdoors under the trees.

  Café Napoleon

  Redcliffe Quay; tel 562 1820. Mon–Sat 7.30am–5.30pm.

  At this French-owned café/bakery/patisserie, enjoy good breakfasts – freshly baked baguettes and croissants with butter, jam, pineapple juice and coffee for EC$14 – and, at lunchtime, excellent sandwiches (EC$15–25) on a shaded patio.

  The Commissioner Grill

  Between Redcliffe and Heritage quays; tel 462 1883. Daily 10am–11pm.

  Excellent West Indian food is served all day in this popular and easy-going saloon, from tasty breakfasts of saltfish, eggs or fruit through to hearty suppers of fish, chicken and lobster (EC$25–75).

  George

  Corner of Market and Redcliffe streets; tel 562 4866, [email protected]. Daily 8.30am–11pm.

  Right in the heart of the city, this lively restaurant serves top-notch West Indian food on a large, airy upstairs gallery decked out in sea-blues and -greens. The regular menu includes fire-roasted jerk shrimp and "chicken on a wire" (EC$35), while the weekend adds a number of Antiguan specialities including goat water, conch water, souse, rice pudding and pepperpot stew (EC$30–50).

  Hemingway's

  St Mary's St; tel 462 2763, www.hemingwaysantigua.com. Mon–Sat 8.30am–11pm.

  Housed in an atmospheric, early nineteenth-century green-and-white wooden building, with a balcony overlooking the street and Heritage Quay, Hermingway's can be overwhelmingly crowded when the cruise ships are in; at other times, it's a great place to be, serving a range of excellent food, from sandwiches and burgers to fish and steak dinners (EC$25–50).

  Home

  Gambles Terrace, Lower Gambles; tel 461 7651, fax 461 0277, www.thehomerestaurant.com, [email protected]. Mon–Fri dinner only, Sat lunch & dinner. Closed June & July.

  Attractive restaurant in a converted home, a little ways from the centre of town, serving "Caribbean haute cuisine". Look for tasty starters of fish cakes or lobster cakes (EC$26–34), elaborate main cours
es of fillet of snapper stuffed with shrimps in lobster sauce (EC$65), blackened jackfish in chilli garlic sauce (EC$55) or chicken breast with fresh mango and pineapple in a coconut curry sauce.

  Joe Mike's

  Corner of Nevis Street and Corn Alley; tel 462 1142. Daily 7.30am–10pm.

  Unpretentious local eatery and small hotel that's a popular lunchtime haunt for government ministers and other prominent Antiguans. Servings include large portions of ducana and saltfish, stewed pork, fungi and lingfish or barbecued ribs, all for around EC$15–25.

  Mama Lolly's Vegetarian Café

  Redcliffe Quay; tel 562 1552. Daily 8.30am–4.30pm.

  Small, friendly café serving fresh-pressed juices and smoothies for EC$10–15. Also has a good vegetarian lunch menu, including lasagna, roti and red bean stew for no more than EC$23 for a large portion with salads.

  O'Grady's Pub

  Redcliffe Street; tel 462 5392, [email protected]. Mon–Sat lunch & dinner.

  Popular place serving home-cooked English pub grub – shepherd's pie, steak and kidney pie, fish'n'chips and the like for EC$15–30 – on a veranda overlooking one of the city's main streets.

  Papa Zouk

  Hilda Davis Drive, Gambles; tel 464 6044 or 464 7576. Mon–Sat 6pm–11pm.

  Imaginative Antiguan food served on a tiny patio festooned with flowers. The menu is small but interesting, with local produce thrown into dishes like Creole bouillabaisse or a seafood medley (EC$35–55).

  Philton's Bakery Café

  Gambles Medical Centre, Friar's Hill Rd; tel 463 2253 or 462 9447. Mon–Sat 8am–8pm.

  On the outskirts of St John's, this café is a good option for breakfast or lunch, serving freshly baked breads, muffins and pastries as well as hot lunch specials like pasta, pizza and slow-roasted chicken (EC$10–25).

  Shops

  Bryson's supermarket

  At the bottom of Long Street by the water. Mon–Sat 8am–9pm, Sun 9am–4pm.